🚀 Finding the Best Playwright Locators in Seconds with Codegen

When I first started learning Playwright, I spent far too much time trying to find the “perfect” locator. I would inspect elements, experiment with CSS selectors, and constantly fix tests that broke after small UI changes. Then I discovered Playwright Codegen. Suddenly, finding stable locators became almost effortless. In this article, I’ll show you how to use Codegen and the Playwright Inspector to generate reliable locators in seconds.

👉 Playwright Codegen

Codegen can automatically generate recommended locators while you interact with your application.

In this article, you’ll learn how to use Playwright Codegen + Inspector to discover the best locator in seconds.

What is Playwright Codegen?

Codegen is a Playwright tool that:

• Opens a browser

• Records your interactions

• Generates Playwright test code automatically

• Suggests the best locator strategy

Instead of manually searching the DOM, Playwright analyzes the page and recommends locators like:

• getByRole()

• getByLabel()

• getByText()

• getByPlaceholder()

These are user-facing locators, which are more stable than raw CSS selectors.

Step 1 — Run Playwright Codegen

Run this command in your terminal:

npx playwright codegen http://localhost:4200

Playwright will:

1. Open a browser

2. Launch the Playwright Inspector

3. Start generating code as you interact with the page

You’ll see something like this:

await page.getByRole('textbox', { name: 'Email' }).click();
await page.getByRole('textbox', { name: 'Email' }).fill('denis@email.com');
await page.getByRole('button', { name: 'Login' }).click();

Notice something important here:

Playwright prefers:

getByRole
getByLabel
getByText

These locators are based on how users see the interface, not on fragile DOM structures.

Step 2 — Click Elements to Generate Code

Once Codegen is running:

1. Click inside the browser window

2. Interact with your application normally

3. Playwright will generate test code automatically

Example interaction:

• Click email field

• Type email

• Click login button

await page.getByRole('textbox', { name: 'Email' }).fill('denis@email.com');
await page.getByRole('button', { name: 'Login' }).click();

This code can be copied directly into your test files.

Step 3 — Understand the Locator Strategy

Playwright follows a locator hierarchy when generating selectors.

Best → Worst

getByRole()
getByLabel()
getByPlaceholder()
getByText()
getByTestId()
CSS locator()
XPath

This is why Codegen rarely generates something like:

page.locator("div:nth-child(3) > button")

Those selectors are fragile and break easily.

Step 4 — Refine Locators with the Inspector

While Codegen is running, you also have access to the Playwright Inspector.

The Inspector allows you to:

• Pick elements visually

• Highlight matched elements

• See how many elements match a locator

• Debug tests interactively

For example, if a locator matches multiple elements, the Inspector will show something like:

3 elements matched

This immediately tells you the locator is too broad.

Example: Improving a Locator

Bad locator:

await page.locator("input").first().fill("test@email.com");

Why this is problematic:

• It depends on DOM order

• If another input appears, the test breaks

Better locator:

await page.getByLabel("Email").fill("test@email.com");

Now the test is clearer and more stable.

Debugging Tip: Use the Playwright Inspector

You can also pause your tests and inspect locators interactively.

Add this line to your test:

await page.pause();

Then run:

npx playwright test --headed

The Playwright Inspector opens, letting you:

• select elements

• test locators

• refine selectors quickly

Why Codegen is So Powerful

Codegen is extremely useful because it:

✔ saves time
✔ suggests stable locators
✔ teaches best practices automatically
✔ helps beginners learn Playwright faster

Many automation engineers use Codegen as a starting point for writing tests.

Final Thoughts

Writing stable locators is one of the most important skills in automation testing.

Instead of manually guessing selectors, use Playwright Codegen to generate reliable locators in seconds.

The workflow becomes simple:

Run Codegen
↓
Interact with your app
↓
Copy generated locators
↓
Refine if necessary

With this approach, you’ll spend less time debugging locators and more time building meaningful tests.

Writing good automation tests isn’t just about tools—it’s about choosing the right techniques. Locator strategy is one of the biggest reasons tests become fragile over time. By using Playwright Codegen and the Inspector, you can immediately discover stable locators and build more reliable tests from the start.

If you’re learning Playwright or working in QA automation, I’ll continue sharing practical tips like this—things that save time and improve test stability.

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Happy testing 🚀